Gavin Newsom signs bill into law shielding providers of abortions, gender-affirming care

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NEWSOM SIGNS SLATE OF ABORTION RIGHTS BILLS INTO LAW

California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a raft of bills into law Wednesday aimed at further cementing abortion protections in the state.

Newsom said in a statement that abortion is enshrined in the California Constitution, and that the state will continue to protect both seekers of reproductive health care and providers of the same, as “radical politicians continue their all out assault on women’s health care with dangerous and deadly consequences.”

The governor signed nine bills in all.

One was SB 345, by Sen. Nancy Skinner, D-Berkeley. It shields not only abortion providers, but also medical staff who provide gender-affirming medical care to transgender patients from criminal or civil liability in states that have criminalized such procedures. The measure will also allow people who live in those states to contact a California health care provider through telehealth or videoconferencing and have medication shipped to them by a California pharmacy.

The bill also bars California law enforcement, government officials and government contractors from cooperating with out-of-state prosecutions of those providing abortion or gender-affirming care. It blocks California-based social media and tech companies from sharing private communications with law enforcement regarding legally protected health care.

“With Gov. Newsom’s signing of SB 345, health care providers, physically located in California, will be able to offer a lifeline to people in states that have cut off access to essential care, and be shielded from the draconian laws of those states,” Skinner said in a statement.

Other bills signed Wednesday include SB 487, which adds safeguards for abortion providers who participate in the Medi-Cal program; AB 1707, which shields health care providers from licensing actions initiated by? states hostile to abortion or gender-affirming care; AB 254 and AB 352, which further strengthen medical records privacy for abortion and gender-affirming care; AB 571, which prevents insurers from denying malpractice coverage to abortion or gender-affirming care providers; AB 1720, which requires ultrasounds be conducted in licensed facilities; and AB 1646 and SB 385, which are aimed at increasing the reproductive health care workforce.

CARE COURT TO LAUNCH IN SEVEN CALIFORNIA COUNTIES

Via Maggie Angst...

Starting Monday, seven California counties will begin accepting patient referrals for the new system that will compel residents struggling with mental health and addiction into court-ordered treatment.

Community Assistance, Recovery and Empowerment, or CARE Court, was crafted by Newsom last year as a way to provide treatment and housing for people who are suffering from severe forms of mental illness and are unable to care for themselves. Newsom is specifically targeting people with behavioral health issues who are living in encampments.

During a new briefing Wednesday to promote the launch, Dr. Mark Ghaly, California Health & Human Services Agency secretary, said it’s clear the status quo “can’t be where we accept.”

“The goal of CARE is to, for this very specific population of Californians, provide an opportunity, and a pathway to get the kind of services I think so many believe are necessary,” he said.

Disability rights and mental health advocates worry that CARE Court and other recent mental health proposals from the governor will lead to an uptick in involuntary holds, further traumatizing people diagnosed with behavioral health issues.

Ghaly said he believed temporary holds in care facilities were better than long-term stays in jails and prisons, where some people could end up.

“We need something to change, and we put together a pathway and an opportunity to foster that change,” he said.

As part of CARE Court, counties are required to launch specialized courts tasked with designing treatment plans and tracking cases for referred patients suffering from serious psychotic disorders, such as schizophrenia.

Glenn, Orange, Riverside, San Diego, San Francisco, Stanislaus, and Tuolumne counties are launching the program on Monday, followed by Los Angeles County December 1.

The state’s remaining counties, including Sacramento, have until Dec. 1, 2024, to comply.

The Newsom administration estimates 7,000 to 12,000 people would meet CARE Court criteria — a small portion of the state’s more than 170,000 homeless.

QUOTE OF THE DAY

“As we continue to witness the growing number of attacks against our LGBTQ+ community in California and across the nation, today’s legal action is a testament to our ongoing commitment to ensuring the rights of transgender youth are safeguarded and fully available.”

- California Attorney General Rob Bonta, in a statement discussing his filing of a 20-state amicus brief against an Indiana law blocking transgender youths from accessing gender-affirming medical care.

Best of The Bee:

• The El Dorado County Board of Supervisors sat through a stream of antisemitic phone calls Tuesday afternoon, from people voicing disapproval of the board’s recent vote to rescind its designation of July as American Christian Heritage Month, via Jenavieve Hatch.

• Sacramento County for six months has been sitting on a $25 million check from the state of California to shelter unhoused people living on the American River Parkway, via Theresa Clift.

• Gas prices at California pumps are on the rise, and there is a possibility that prices will continue to increase, via Jacqueline Pinedo.

• Following the discovery that a county medical contractor was smuggling fentanyl into the Sacramento County Main Jail, Sheriff Jim Cooper is calling for an overhaul of the jail’s health care system, via Theresa Clift.